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A Roman watchtower

Muir o’Fauld is a watchtower along the Gask Ridge Roman frontier. When in use, it would have consisted of:

  • a square timber tower

  • a surrounding earthwork rampart

  • a ditch and an upcast bank

What survives today is a 15.7m-wide circular mound, a ditch and an outer bank. A causeway leads 15m north of the mound to join the Roman road.

A partially cleared forest, and within it there is a clearing with a circular shape cut out from the grass

The early Roman reign

The Gask Ridge frontier is regarded as the earliest Roman example of a frontier system of roads, forts and watchtowers. It stretches over 37km from Glenbank to Bertha on the Tay.

The Romans’ initial invasion of Scotland came in AD 79–80, under Gnaeus Julius Agricola, Governor of Britain. It occurred during the reigns of Emperor Vespasian and his sons Titus and Domitian.

The Gask Ridge sites were all built in the early years of occupation, and were abandoned in about AD 87 or 88, as the Romans withdrew from Scotland.

Statement of Significance

You can find out more about Muir o'Fauld Roman Signal Station in our Statement of Significance, part of a series of special documents outlining the history and development of Historic Scotland sites.

Read more
Aerial view of circular earthwork amid woodland and fallen trees.
A large stretch of countryside, some of which has forest or cleared trees, and in the forest is the round shape of a historic site

Discover more on trove.scot

See archive photographs of Muir o'Fauld Roman Signal Station plus archaeology notes and more on trove.scot. 

Muir o'Fauld on trove.scot